Five Tips When Building a Playoff-Bound Team

[RaychelSnr]

Now that many people have had a chance to pick up a copy of MLB 09: The Show or MLB 2K9, they may be thinking about starting a franchise and drafting their very own team. However, the most important question faced by these new general managers is what kinds of players would be best for a playoff-caliber team.

For those people who wish to participate in a realistic draft, there may be some tough choices when it comes to which players will be best for the team. So here are five tips aimed at helping users build a successful squad via a fantasy draft.

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[Trevytrev11]

You basically just described why the Angels are in the playoffs damn near every year. They have a pitching staff/bullpen that always keeps them in games and a lineup full of guys that put the bat on the ball, run smart and hard and play good defense.

2008-Top 10 in:

ERA, WHIP, Saves,
Batting Average,Offensive Strikeouts, SB's,
Fielding %, Errors.

Again, they pitch well, take care of the baseball and make things happen on the bases. They are the team you hate to face late in a close game because they can scrape together a run with the best of them.

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Unfortunately in video games, things don't always carry the same weight. Solid defensive players don't stand out from the rest like they should in real life as guys can regularly play gold glove defense when they are playing out of position. A mediocre pitcher with a decent curve can pitch better against an opponent than a true ace and putting the ball in play often has more to do with the users skill than the actual player ratings.

[BlyGilmore]

Good article, although I don't necessarily agree with a few of your points.

Contact is great, but if you have a team of all contact guys with little pop in your lineup you're going to have issues. The key is to have a mix of contact and power guys.

Speed is also a nice to have, IMO. Something you can plan and strategize around if you don't have it and still be successful.

[Uncle Stumpy]

I haven't tried franchise mode in years because of he long baseball season, but am going to try again this year, because i love MLB 09 that much. Lookin forward to bringing the bluejays back to world series champs again! It's the only way they'll ever win it! lol

[Ohpityme]

A bit too simplistic, and I dont nescessarily agree with it either.
Give me a team of Adam Dunns(Power,low batting average,good OBP) over a team of Juan Pierres(Good batting average, zero power, average OBP)any day of the week.